The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-04-30

The Friend of the People.
In the case of Guilford Miller the PRECEDENT
has furnished another conspicuous instance
of his independence, self-reliance and will
ingness tc accept responsibility. His letter
t. the Secretary of the Interior in this case
will do as much to increase his popularity
with the people as his veto of the dependent
pension bill did.
The President is strong with the people
because he is in harmony with them rather
than with the politicians, corporations and
monopohes When question is presented
for his decision he asks, On which side is the
right: In what way can the people be ben
cited: He does not want to know how he
can increase his popularity, or how he can
favor powerful friends or rich monopolies.
In his Calhoun Grafton Secretary Lamar
said that the President had been found
fault with because he insisted upon keeping
his promises to the people. The President
ought to welcome criticism of that kind be-
cause it proves that he is faithful to the
trust which the people elected him to ad-
minister.
The Guilford Miller case has attracted a
great deal of attention because the parties
to it are the Northern Pacific railroad,
powerful corporation, and poor farmer in
Washington Territory, and, also, because
there are a great many other similar cases.
The Northern Pacific railroad was chartered
in 1864, and was given strip of land 40
miles wide extending throughout its entire
length. This magnificent grant includes
$4,000, 600 acres. The only condition i'm
posed upon the company was that it should
complete its road in twelve years. 1t has
not completed it yet, but it still holds its
grant through the indulgence of Congress-
AS some of the lands within the
40-mile strip had been occupied
by settlers under presumption and home
stead laws the company was given permits
sion to go outside of it and select lands to
make up the amount to which it is entitled
This selection, however, has never been
made because the company does not yet
know the amount it ought to have outside
Of its strip.
In 1873 Guilford Miller settled on quar-
ter section, 80 miles from the line of the
road. He was 10 miles outside of the COM
pany's strip, and felt that he would be safe
in making improvements In 1888 he en-
tered his land as a homestead. 1t seems,
however, that at the solicitation of the
railroad company, and in pursuance Of
the policy of favoring great corporations
which characterized the Republican party,
the Interior Department had in 1872
withdrawn from the operation of the land
laws millions of acres of lands outside of the
40-mile strip in expectation that they
would be needed to make up the full amount
of the grant of the company. Guilford
Miller's homestead is on these withdrawn
lands, and there are thousands of other home
steads on them
| In 1885 the company demanded Guilford
| Millers homestead. He appealed to the In
terror Department The officials there
differed on the question whether the land
was his or the railroads. The department
had permitted the homestead entry to be
made and it had also withdrawn the land
for the benefit of the railroad The Attor-
ney Generals opinion was asked He de-
cded i'll favor of the railroad. Guilford
Miller then appealed to the President who,
in letter to the Secretary of the Interior,
holds that as the railroad company has
never selected any lands outside of the
40-mile strip, and as it doesn't
know how much it is entitled
to outside of it, Gulford Miller
ought to have his farm, and that all the
other farmers who claim homesteads on the
land which the railroad wants should have
their farms. He thinks that the railroad
can get all the land it is entitled to without
driving Guilford Miller and other farmers
from their homes.
The Presidents letter will make him
friends all over the West. 1t will make hin
friends in other parts of the country, because
it stamps him us friend of the people and
the champion of the weak and oppressed.